It was a road game in the fall of 2000. The team was the winless Cincinnati Bengals, who at 0-6, were in the midst of an extended losing streak that had started the year before. They were a team who struggled to score points (averaging a dismal 5.2 points per game), didn't have an all-star QB (remember Akili Smith?), and they had a defense that struggled, in part, due to their offense's inability to control the game. However, they had a bruiser of a running back who carried the offense on his shoulders (Corey Dillon).

The 2000 Denver Broncos would take an offense that was one of the best in the NFL (2nd in points and yards), a QB who was playing at a Pro-Bowl level (yeah - THAT Brian Griese), and a winning record. Unfortunately, their success was tainted by a defense that struggled against the pass (they ranked 31st out of 31 teams in yards and 27th in TDs) but was decent against the run. They were heavy favorites to beat the Bengals.

Fast forward to today.

It was a road game in the fall of 2008. The team was the winless Kansas City Chiefs, who at 0-3, were in the midst of an extended losing streak that had started the year before. They were a team who struggled to score points (averaging a dismal 10.2 points per game), didn't have an all-star QB (Damon Huard? Are you kidding me?), and they had a defense that struggled, in part, due to their offense's inability to control the game. However, they had a bruiser of a running back who carried the offense on his shoulders (Larry Johnson).

The 2008 Denver Broncos would take an offense that was one of the best in the NFL (1st in points and yards), a QB who was playing at a Pro-Bowl level, and a winning record. However, their success was tainted by a defense that struggled against the pass (ranked 32nd out of 32 in yards and 27th in TDs) but were decent against the run. They were heavy favorites to beat the Chiefs.

Unfortunately, the similarities don't end there.

In 2000, against all odds, the hapless Bengals would not only beat the Broncos, but do it in convincing fashion. Corery Dillon would rush for 278 yards and 2 touchdowns on 22 carries. His longest run being 65 yards. The Broncos defense would surrender a staggering 407 rushing yards overall.

In 2008, against all odds, the hapless Chiefs would not only beat the Broncos, but do it in convincing fashion. Larry Johnson would rush for 198 yards and 2 touchdowns on 28 carries. His longest run being 65 yards. The Broncos defense would surrender a less staggering, but staggering none the less, 213 rushing yards overall.

In 2000, Brian Griese would end up throwing the ball 45 times. In 2008, Jay Cutler would end up throwing the ball 49 times. Griese would pass for 365 yards. Jay Cutler would pass for 361.

And perhaps the most amazing statistic of all. In 2000, the Broncos would commit 3 turnovers, including 2 lost fumbles. In 2008, the Broncos would commit 4 turnovers, including 2 lost fumbles.

Like I said, it was a bad sequel. A VERY BAD SEQUEL.

This week's highs and lows....

HIGHS :2thumbs:

1 - Offensive line. As has been the case all season, the O-line was solid in protecting Jay Cutler. They yielded only one sack and gave Jay lots of time in the pocket.

3 - Michael Pittman. "Guns" was good for over 80 total yards on only 6 plays. He had 4 rushes for 36 yards and 2 receptions for 45 yards.

4 - Matt Prater. Yeah, he missed a short field goal on his first attempt, but the guy kicked TWO field goals over 50 yards (56 and 51 yards). He would go 4/5 in the game.

5 - Third down defense. While the defense would give up two 3rd and long situations, overall the defense held the Chiefs to 5 of 13 on third down.

6 - First half defense. While you will see below that the defense had some lows, they played pretty well in the first half considering that turnovers and poor special teams gave the Chiefs great field position. KC drives started at the KC 11, Den 26, KC 48, KC 19, Den 2, KC 20 and KC 40.

LOWS :2thumbsdown:

1 - Defensive line. Let's face it folks, this d-line is inconsistent and ineffective. Against one of the worst offenses in football, Damon Huard (who started the season as the third string QB) had enough time to complete all but 7 of his 28 pass attempts. The Chiefs hadn't seen that type of efficiency all season.

2 - Run defense. I have been stating all season that our "great" run defense might be an aberration due to the early big leads we have enjoyed in the first three games. As we all know, teams will pass more than run when behind big. This game indicated that my concerns had merit, as Larry Johnson would run for nearly 200 yards and two touchdowns. Probably the greatest concern in this area was at the end of the game when everybody from here to Mars knew Johnson was getting the ball and the Broncos could do nothing about it.

3 - Red Zone. This had been an area of strength so far this season, so hopefully today's game was just an off day. But, 1 of 4 in the RZ won't get it done.

4 - Turnovers. Two lost fumbles and two interceptions. Nothing else to say about this one, except that both of Jay's INTs were preventable and only happened because he was zeroing in Marshall. On the rollout play, where Jay rolled left and threw the ball across field to Marshall, Scheffler was wide open for a TD down the middle. This type of rookie play in his third year shouldn't happen.

5 - Special teams. Kickoff coverage was weak. The Broncos would give up returns of 35 and 51 yards. When added to the field position the Chiefs would enjoy thanks to turnovers mentioned above, special teams didn't do anything to help the defense. The punting game was poor as well. Kern had an unimpressive 38 yard average on two punts.

6 - Slowick. His defensive game plan was pathetic. His blitzes were predictable and his experiement with the 3-4 isn't showing any results. It's a good thing he and Shanny are old college buddies, but I don't know if that will even be enough if we don't see some big time improvement before the bye week.

7 - Running game. Production in this area has been declining week after week. I think it hit bottom in this game. Hopefully Torrain is all Shanny says he is and he is playing after week 9.

8 - Shanny's game preparation. Why is it that the Broncos stuggle like this in games they should dominate? Why do his teams struggle in games with the early start times (1 PM eastern)? I know players have to perform, but the coaches have to game plan to the strengths of the players. It seemed to be missing in today's game.

Yeah, this game was one the Broncos should have won, but just like the original version of this movie, they would lose it big time. But there's one more thing about that movie in 2000.....

..... that team would finish the season 11-5 and make the playoffs. Hopefully, that part of the movie isn't left out of the sequel.

BroncoBJ

09-29-2008, 02:00 AM

Nice :salute:
And damn.. I forgot all about that game back in 2000. :eek:
I didn't know they were 0-6. I was in 7th grade I think so I don't remember much but that was a sick loss.
Crazy how time flies.

Hopefully this is a wakeup call before we play our 2 Florida teams. :salute:

Retired_Member_001

09-29-2008, 07:48 AM

I must say, this is article has been written EXTREMELY well.

I guess your last line is the key part,
..... that team would finish the season 11-5 and make the playoffs. Hopefully, that part of the movie isn't left out of the sequel.

We have to carry on and not let this game affect us too much. Well, the offense needs to carry on doing their thing, the defense needs a slap.